Tobacco-stemming machine.



. No. 664,7!4. Patented Dec. 25, I900.

M. C. BAUGHAN.

TOBACCO STEMMING MACHINE.

(Application filed Feb. 19, 1900.1

(No Model.) 6 Sheets-Sheet 2.

//v VENTOI? w/r/vz-ssssz- 1/ 6.,Zeugkwv. "7 4 By W A HORNE Y8 No. 664,7l4. Patented Dec. 25, 19011 M. c. BAUGHAN.

TOBACCO STEMMING MACHINE.

(No Model.) 6 Sheets-Sheet 3,

. IE N Q b INVENTOI? ATTORNEYS WITNESSES:

No. 664,714. f Patent'ed Dec. 25, I900. M. c. BAUGHAN.

TOBACCO STEMIIING MACHINE.

(Application filed Feb. 19, I900.) (No Model.) I GSheets-Sheat 4,

IN VENTOFI A 77'0RNEYS m: uonms PETER5 co. moram'nou war-5:51am by c.

No. 664,714. Patented Dec. 25, I900.

. M. C. BAUGHAN.

TOBACCO STEMMING MACHINE.

(Application filed Feb. 19, 1900.) (No Model.) 6 Sheets-Sheet 5.

WITNESSES: /NVENTO/? 14 2 6, M I .f

1m; Nonms PETERS c0, PHoTuLlma, wasnmn'rou. a c.

No. 664,714. Patented Dec. 25, I900. M. C. BAUGHAN.

- TOBACCO STEMMING MACHINE.

(Applicatiozi filed Feb. 19, 1900.

6 Sheats$heet 6.

(No Model) W/ TNE SSE 8 Tn: Nonms PETERS ca. PNOYOUTHQ wnsw urrou; n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MILTON C. BAUGHAN, OF BARTON HEIGHTS, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE BAUGHAN TOBACCO STEIWIMING VIRGINIA.

MACHINE COMPANY, OF RICHMOND,

TOBACCO-STEMMING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 664,714, dated December 25, 1900. Application filed February 19, 1900- Serial No. 5,708. \NO model-J T (LIZ whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, MILTON O. BAUGHAN, residing at Barton Heights, in the county of Henrico and State of Virginia, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Tobacco- Stemming Machines, of which the following is a specification. t

This invention is an improvement in machines for stemmingtobaeco, and has for an [0 object to provide a simple construction of machine by which to efficiently remove the stem from the leaf without any injury to the body of the leaf and with practically no waste; and the invention consists in certain novel constructions and combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a side view, and Fig. 2 a vertical longitudinal section, of a machine embodying my invention. Fig. 3

is a detail side view of one of the leaf-spreading brushes. Fig. 4 is a detail cross-section on about line 4 4 of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a detail view in perspective of one of the cores of the spreading-brushes. Fig. 6 is a top plan view, parts being broken away, of my machine. Figs. 7, 8, and 9 are respectively cross-sectional views on lines 7 7, 8 8, and 9 9 of Fig. 2. Fig. 10 is a side view, and Fig. 11 a top plan view,of the stem-holder for retaining the stem while it is being acted on by the openingbrushes; and Fig. 12 is a detail perspective view of the feed plate or table.

The machine embodies side frames A A, in 3 5 which are journaled in suitable bearings the shafts of the several rollers, pulleys, and wheels employed in the machine. The feed table or plate B is also supported by the side frames and is provided in its rear or delivery 0 edge with a central notch B, which fits over the central guide C, which aids in turning or folding the leaf. On opposite sides of the notch B, and consequently lying on opposite sides of the guide C in the application of the 5 parts as shown in Fig. 6, I form grooves or depressions B which lead at their rear edges to the infeeri-rollers D D, which take the stems and direct them into the holder, which is composed of the upper and lower plates E E. These plates E E extend from the inl feed-rollers D D back to the forward pulleys for the carrying-belts, and the plates E and E are cut out or slotted at their forward edges at E to receive the feed-rollers D and D, as will be understood from Figs. 2, l0, and 11. The holder sections or plates E and E may be supported in any suitable manner, and the outer edges of the upper and lower plates are spaced apart sufficiently to permit the folded leaf to pass between them while the stem is fed through the holder, as will beunderstood from Fig. 9. The holder, as shown in Figs. 9, l0, and 11, is thus composed of upper and lowersections having a passage, as shown in Fig. 9, through which the stein may move longitudinally, and a lateral slit or opening forming a passage for the body of the leaf, through which such body of the leaf passes, as is also shown in Fig. 9. The folded leaf is subjected to the action of the spreading devices while its stem is held in the holder. I therefore arrange the spreading devices alongside of and laterally to the stem-holder, so that such spreading devices may operate as desired. The spreading devices are in the nature of brushes and specificallyare in the form of tapering worms whose larger ends are arranged next the stem-holder and which gradually decrease in diameter or taper toward their outer ends. In the construction as shown and preferred the brushes have a spiral rib F, which is preferably of coarse felt suitably formed into a yarn or strand which is secured at its opposite ends to and wound between its ends in a spiral groove G, formedin a core G, which is shown in detail in Fig. 5 and is bored at G so that it can he slipped on its driving-shaft and secured by a screw passed through an opening G as shown. This construction is preferred because it is easily made, operates efficiently upon the leaf of tobacco, and can be easily repaired by replacing the felt strand F when worn. In addition to spreading the leaf, as before described, the brushes operate to posi- 5 tively feed the leaf forward, being for such purpose provided near their inner or butt ends with circumferentially-extending portions which bear against the leaf close to the i. I a

guide E and operate as pulleys or rollers to I00 feed the leaf forward. This forwardly-feeding portion is preferably provided by forming the groove in the core G with a circumferentially-extended portion near its inner end and extending the yarn or other bushing material therein, as shown in Fig. 3, to form practically a pulley by which to feed the leaf. By preference I employ two spreading-brushes for each leaf, one lying above and the other below the passage for such leaf, so that they oppose each other,.the spirals of the opposing brushes being reversed to secure the desired operation of spreading the leaf outwardly from the point where it is held by its stem. In the machine shown I provide for feeding leaves on opposite sides of the guide 0, and I also furnish two pairs of spreading-brushes. In this construction the two. lower brushes are secured .on the same shaft I and the two upper brushes on the same shaft I, and the power is applied by belts, as shown, or otherwise as may be desired to drive the spreading-rollers at a comparatively high rate of speed.

In the operation of the described construction the leaves are fed by hand, if desired, or by suitable mechanism to the grooves B in the feed-plate B, when the stems entering such grooves will pass to the feed-rollers, the guide 0 adjacent to said grooves and projecting in advance of the feed-rollers operatingin connection with such rollers to properly fold the leaf so that its stem willpass between the upper and lower sections or plates ofthe stemholder, while the body of the leaf, doubled to produce the upper and lower halves or sections, will pass between the upper and lower spreading-rollers and will be opened out and spread smoothly, as desired. From the stemholder and the spreading-brushes the leaf is discharged to the carrying-belts, which in the construction shown include the stem-carrying belts Jand J and the leafcarrying belts Kand K. By leaf-carrying belts I intend to distinguish the belts for carrying the body of theleaf from those J and J for carrying the stem. As the machine is designed for operating upon two parallel rows of leaves, I prefer to provide leaf-carrying belts K and K on opposite sides of the intermediate stem-carrying belts J and J. The belts J and J are carried on the pulleys L L, M M, and L -M the pulleys L andM and their opposing pulleys L and M being arranged on practically horizontal lines,

while the pulleys N andO are elevated to discharge the stem at the upper rear portion of the machine. The belts K and K are carried on the pulleys N N, O O, and N and 0 The pulleys N and N are concentric with the pulleys L and L, and the pulleys O and O are concentric with the pulleys M and M, and the pulleys N and O are depressed below the plane of the other pulleys, as is shown in Fig. 2'. It is evident from this figare and the foregoing description that as the leaves are directed through the machine the stem will be carried upward and the body of the leaves downward from a point in rear of the rollers M M and O and O. This may be termed the point of divergence of the belts for carrying the stems and the leaves, and I provide in advance of such point of divergence means for severing the stem fromthe' body of the leaf,which may be termed stemw separating devices. This may preferably be rotary cutters P, secured to the opposite ends of the pulley M for the stem-carrying belt J, and these cutters may be arranged to out against the opposing pulleys belo w. operation of this construction the folded leaf, properly spread as described, is cut by the stem-carrying belt and the leaf-carrying belt and is carried from the stem holder and guide E E rearwardly to the rotary cutters P, which separate the stem from the body of the leaf, such stem being carried upward and discharged, while the body of the leaf is carried downward and discharged, as before described. V

In Fig. 2 I show an idler Q for supporting the belts that run over it. v In the operation of my invention under certain circumstances the arrangement of the belts for carrying the stem and those for carrying the body of the leaf to diverge, as before described, may operate to strip the stem from the body of the leaf without the necessity of In the sel employing separate stem-separating devices; 7

but I prefer to employ such stem-separating devices, and I find that the rotary cutters arranged as before described operate efficiently for such purpose.

While the stem-carrying belt-s K and K may be made with smooth surfaces to receive and hold the stems, it is preferred to form the said belts in their outer faces with longitudinal groves j and j, located near the opposite V edges of said belts, and which grooves coincide in the adjacent runs of the two belts.

These grooves are fitted to receive the stem of a tobacco-leaf and operate to prevent any displacement of the leaf after it has been in other words, that in the first use of the machine the stems passing between the belts J J will produce the longitudinal grooves permanently in the said belts.

The feed-rollers D and D are grooved and constitute feeding devices having grooves for V the stems, which grooves are spaced apart.

Between these receiving-grooves is located the guide 0, which inclines at C outwardly a 7 to the said grooves, as will be understood from Fig. 6. V r

I have shown means for driving the several 'iio:

comprising belts for carrying the stems and belts for carrying the body of the leaf, such stem and leaf carrying belts extending for a part of their length side by side and diverging in advance of their discharge ends, and

supports for said belts, substantially as set forth.

2. A machine for stemming tobacco having means for seizing and holding the leaf and comprising the stem-carrying belt and the leaf-carrying belt arranged to diverge in advance of their discharge ends, and stem-separating devices arranged to operate in advance of the point of divergence of the belts substantially as set forth.

3. A machine for stemming tobacco comprising the stem-carrying belts provided in their outer faces with longitudinal grooves which coincide in the adjacent runs of the belts, and the leaf-carrying belts extending for a part of their lengths alongside the stemcarrying belts, such stem-carrying belts and leaf-carrying belts being arranged to diverge in advance of their discharge ends, and supports for said belts substantially as set forth.

4. In a machine for stemming tobacco, the combination of opposing belts with their adjacent runs in close proximity whereby they are adapted to feed the body of the tobaccoleaf lengthwise between them, opposing belts alongside and closely adjacent to the first pair with their adjacent runs in close proximity and adapted to feed the stem lengthwise between them and a stemming device between said pairs of belts substantially as set forth.

5. A machine for stemming tobacco comprising a pair of opposing belts for feeding the body of the leaf, a pair of opposing belts for feeding the stem and arranged alongside and closely adjacent to the body of the feeding-belts and means for separating the stem from the body of the leaf in the direction of length of the opposing belts substantially as set forth.

6. A machine for stemming tobacco having the two stem-carrying belts with their adjacent runs moving in the same direction, and having in their outer sides near their opposite edges coincident grooves adapted to receive the stem of a tobacco-leaf, combined with devices on opposite sides of said belts for operating upon the body of the leaf to spread the same, substantially as set forth.

7. A machine having the upper and lower feed-belts provided with coincident, longitudiual grooves and means for directing the stems thereto and for removing the stem substantially as set forth.

8. The combination in a machine for stemming tobacco, of the leaf-feeding devices, the table or plate adjacent thereto and having slots for the introduction of the stem to such devices, and the guide along the inner side of said slots whereby to direct the stem thereto and turn the body of the leaf over and outward, substantially as Set forth.

9. Anapparatussubstantiallyasdescribed,

comprising a stem-holding device having a passage through which the stern may move longitudinally and a lateral opening for the passage of the body of the leaf in which the uncut leaf may move longitudinally, and the leaf-spreading devices arranged along the open side of the stem-holding devices substantially as set forth.

10. In a machine for stemming tobacco, a leaf-spreading device arranged transversely of the path of the leaf and comprising a brush havinga spirally-disposed rib forming a worm by which to spread the leaf and means for moving the leaf past the brush substantially as set forth.

11. In a machine for stemming tobacco, the

ming machine with devices for feeding the 1 leaf, of opposing brushes arranged transversely of the path of the leaf and having a spiral twist whereby to open or spread the leaf.

13. The combination oftdevices' for feeding the leaf, and opposing brushes arranged alongside said devices and extended transversely of the path of the leaf and having a spiral twist and arranged to open or spread the leaf as it passes between them.

14. The combination in a machine for stemming tobacco, of the means for feeding the leaf, the upper and lower brushes arranged transversely of and above and below the path of the leaf and having a spiral twist whereby to open or spread the leaf, and the stem-carrying belts and the leaf-carrying belts substantially as set forth.

15. A machine for stemming tobacco comprising carrying devices engaging the stem in the direction of its length and carrying devices engaging the body of the leaf in the direction of the leaf whereby the leaf may be carried through the machine longitudinally partly by its stem and partly by its body portion and means whereby the leaves may be fed lengthwise to said belts, substantially as set forth.

16. In a machine for stemming tobacco, the

combination of devices for carrying the leaf, and a stem-holder composed of upper and lower sections and having the lateral opening forming a passage for the body of the leaf substantially as set forth.

17. A machine for stemming tobacco comprising two sets of belts arranged in pairs composed each of opposing belts, the belts of one pair ranging alongside and closely adjacent to those of the other pair whereby one pair of belts may feed the stem longitudinally and the other pair the body of the leaf longitudinally, and supports and operating devices whereby the adjacent runs of the opposing belts may be caused to move in the same direction and means whereby the leaves may be fed lengthwise to said belts.

18. A machine for stemming tobacco comprising the stem-carrying belts, and the pair of leaf-carrying belts alongside said first belts, the pairs of stem-carrying belts and leaf-carrying belts being deflected vertically at their discharge ends in opposite directions and arranged to discharge at different points, substantially as described.

19. In a machine for stemmingt'obacco, the combination of the infeed-rollers, the stemholding device in rear of said rollers and slotted at its end to receive the lower infeedroller, and the leaf-spreading'devices arranged alongside said stem-holding device, substantially as set forth.

20. In a machine for stemming tobacco, the combination of the upper and lower stem-carrying belts, the upper and lower leaf-carrying belts, the pulleys supporting said belts, and the rotary cutters operating alongside and in close proximity to the stem-carrying belts and between the same and the leaf-carrying belts substantially as set forth.

21. A machine for stemming tobacco having a stem-carrying belt, a leaf-carrying belt extending alongside the same, means for bolding the leaf on the belt and a cutter operating 7 between said belts and in close proximity to the stem-carrying belt, substantially as set forth.

22. A machine for stemming tobacco comprising a stem-carrying belt having a groove V i 7 5o tending alongside the stem-carrying belt,

to receive the stem, a leaf-carrying belt exmeans for holding the leaf on the belt and a twist for spreading the leaf, andprovided at r or near its inner end with a circumferential portion by which to feed the leaf forward.

24. In a machine for stemming tobacco the combination of theopposing belts arranged to receive thestem lengthwisebetween them, 1 Q 1 rollers for feeding the stem lengthwise to the belts and a holder or guide for the stem be: tween said rolls and belts.

V 7 25. In a machine for stem ming tobacco, the;

combination of the opposing bolts for carry- 7 ing the stem lengthwise between them, thej rollers for feeding the stem lengthwise, the

stem-holder between said rollers and the point of contact of thebelts and the leaf-spreading.

device arranged alongside the said stemholder.

26. Amachineforstemmingtobaccohaving r opposing belts whose adjacent runs move in the same direction and are adapted to feed the stem of the leaf longitudinally between 7 them, and means whereby the stem may directed lengthwise between said belts.

27. A machine for stemming tobacco comprising opposing belts between which the' stems of the leaves may pass longitudinally,

a stem-holder for directingthe stem longitudinally to said belts, and leaf-spreading de-' vices arranged laterally to said holder and adapted to operate upon the body of the leaf.

MILTON C. BAUGHAN. Witnesses:

GEO. HARRISON, WM. OAMB DAUGHTREY, Jr. 

